We have the pleasure of interviewing in this article a French band that offers Prog with Jazz influences, Pryzme. Their debut album “Four Inches” was released on September 12, 2021.
Hi, how are you?
I’m very well, thanks!
Where does your passion for Prog and Jazz come from?
Our passion for these styles comes from the bands who knew how to compose great musical frescoes and propose a lot of richness in the arrangements. We think of bands like Pink Floyd, Yes but also like the Pat Metheny Group. We are sensitive to melodies, harmonic flights of fancy and elaborate arrangements.
In September 2021 the album “Four Inches” was released, how would you describe this new chapter?
When the band was born in 2014, we mocked up a few songs in the home studio. More came later as we built up the line up and started playing shows. As the years went by, we really wanted to take it to the next level, which was to share our work more widely and get our music out there on a more professional medium. Although self-produced, Four inches is really the result of all these years of work. But it is also a starting point. We wanted to exist in the world of prog and to get feedback from professionals and connoisseurs. We have had quite a few album reviews that have welcomed this first chapter (https://progrockjournal.com/review-pryzme-fourinches or https://progcritique.com/pryzme-four-inches/) and that is very stimulating. Our music is prog rock, maybe a bit more accessible than others, and we realize that we manage to reach people, both lovers of the genre and new ears who didn’t necessarily know this style of music. The themes of your album are very researched, what are the lyrics of this new work about? There is no real thread. Each track is a little story. We talk about moments in life, about an artist we
love (Pat Metheny), about the influence of screens, or about….
How does the process of creating the songs unfold, with complex plots and phrasing between the different instruments?
Our creative process is not a quiet one… It can be born from a guitar riff, a repetitive motif, a rhythmic pattern… the ideas sometimes germinate globally but also as we go along. it is rare that we compose a piece in a short time. The work on harmonies and arrangements can sometimes take a long time. For all the pieces, we mock up the ideas as we go along, we assemble, we disassemble, we test, we refine until the final result. If necessary, we also help each other to advance the most complex pieces. When the piece reaches the stage of rehearsal with the band, the pieces are practically finalised. We make final adjustments together, especially in the chorus.
Many Prog fans will wonder if there will be the possibility to listen to your music live, do you have
any plans for that?
We are currently doing concerts in France exclusively but we are open to any proposal to play abroad. We’re reaching out to all the rock and prog rock programmers in the world, Pryzme is available to play on the world stage!
It was a difficult time because of the pandemic, how did it affect your work?
Well, the recording of four inches was done under special conditions. We were all supposed to go into the studio together but the session was stopped dead in its tracks because of the containment. The recording took longer than expected. Except for Pretty Princess, which we were able to record live, the sessions were very chopped up. The mixing was also delayed for the same reasons. This is the occasion to thank once again the work done by Clément Champigny and Jérome Acquiers from studio 123, who did a remarkable job in terms of mixing, considering the complexity of the arrangements and the schedule which was not easy…
This first album launched you in the world of Prog, are there any new albums in preparation?
It’s still far too early to talk about preparations, but we will soon have enough material to think about
a second album. The compositions will be in the same line as Four Inches, and there will be some very nice harmonic flights of fancy. But we’re not there yet. We’re now focusing on promoting Four Inches.
What advice would you give to young artists who decide to propose more advanced sounds like
Prog?
Not to be afraid to mix traditional prog rock recipes with new sounds. Prog rock fans can like King
Crimson or the Tangent as much as Unitopia or the Contortionist and that’s what makes this style so
rich.
How do you see the future of this genre, which seems to be a niche but has a large following?
As long as small artists like us manage to create something new and release records, alongside the big international bands, I think prog rock will continue to exist. But in order for the machine to continue, these small artists must be able to make a minimum financial living in order to continue to exist. The prog rock scene is a small universe compared to other musical forms We therefore invite the many fans to continue to listen to new music, to share it with as many people as possible, to come to concerts and to buy music of course. We also send a message to programmers all over the world: “Program prog rock!!! the gods of cosmic well-being will give it back to you”.
The last question, as usual, I’ll leave it open so that you can address any subject you like.
Peace and love!
I thank Pryzme for the interview, wishing them the best for their artistic career.
Read our review of the album “Four Inches” here: https://progrockjournal.com/review-pryzme-four-inches/
Lineup
Dominique Blanchard / Guitar and Vocals
Gabrielle Duplenne / Drums and Vocals
David Chollet / Guitar and Vocals
Maxence Marmiyesse / Bass and Vocals
